To Catch a Bullet
by Thiswouldbeakick
Summary: Warning: spoilers for The Golden Circle! 'The shots from Agent Whiskey's gun resounded through Poppy's diner and Harry saw Eggsy crumple to the floor'. Eggsy is injured during the fight at Poppyland. Will Harry and Merlin be able to save his life? Eggsy whump. Please R R.
1. Chapter 1

**So, first of all a warning: this fic contains spoilers for The Golden Circle. So, if you haven't seen it yet, you might not want to read any further ;-)**

 **This fic is set just after the fight at Poppyland. Some major change I made: Merlin doesn't die. Because, that's what we all wanted, right?  
** **Enjoy with this first chapter, next chapters will follow as soon as possible.** **Make a writer happy, please read and review ;-)**

* * *

Harry heard the shots.

One, two, three…

The shots from Agent Whiskey's gun resounded through Poppy's diner and Harry saw Eggsy crumple to the floor. Since the Kingsman suits were made to be bulletproof, he did not worry about the young agent too much. He knew perfectly well that the impact of the bullets to the suit would still be significant and would likely leave Eggsy winded for a few moments, but otherwise he should be fine.

Harry did not have long to focus his attention on Eggsy, though. Now that Agent Whiskey was certain he had gotten rid of one Kingsman agent, he was quickly getting ready for erasing the second.  
With his lasso already gone down the meat mincer a little earlier, Whiskey had no choice but to attack with his bare hands. Harry had already thought he would, because, if his counting had been correct, Whiskey was out of bullets by now.

For a split-second, Harry and Whiskey stared intently at each other, before the Statesman charged at the Kingsman.  
But Harry was ready for him. He precisely measured his actions and caught the American easily by the chest, using his own momentum to lift him up in the air. Harry had not intentionally meant to land Agent Whiskey's head in the meat mincer, but that was where he ended up anyway and Harry simply stood by as the Statesman agent was shredded to pieces.

Harry had expected some snide comment from Eggsy by now, and turned around to see why there was a lack thereof. To his concern he saw Eggsy still lying on the floor, unmoving. He lay on his side with his back turned toward Harry, just like he had fallen after the impact of the bullets.  
"Eggsy?" Harry quickly approached the younger man, not fully knowing what to make of this situation.  
As he got closer, Harry saw something that made his breath catch in his throat.

Blood.

Blood, which could only come from Eggsy.

"Shit" Harry mumbled, now realizing that the situation was far worse than he had initially suspected.  
"Eggsy?" Harry kneeled down next to the younger agent, now confirming that the blood definitely came from him. Eggsy did not move and seemed unconscious.  
Harry carefully rolled Eggsy onto his back. He shook off his jacket and placed it under Eggsy's head to form a pillow.  
It didn't take Harry long to spot the source of the blood: three gunshot wounds marred Eggsy's torso. One of the bullets had lodged itself into his right shoulder, the second one had entered the right side of his chest, most likely damaging some ribs, and the third bullet had hit the left side of his stomach. All three wounds were bleeding quite profusely, already creating a pool of crimson on the floor.

Harry cursed himself for not realizing sooner that Eggsy had been injured. Not that he could have done much until Agent Whiskey had been eliminated, but still it did not sit right with him. Also, he could not quite understand why the Kingsman-suit had not protected Eggsy against the bullets, like it should have.  
Harry picked up one of the shell casings lying on the floor and examined it closely.  
"Of course" he mumbled to himself, "armor piercing rounds". Harry blew out a deep breath, quickly forming a plan in his mind.

Suddenly Harry was all business. He pressed the side of his glasses to open a line of communication to the only person there in Cambodia who could help him now.  
"Merlin" Harry said.  
"Yes, Harry" Merlin answered, "is the situation under control?"  
"The antidote is being released as we speak" Harry answered, "but..." Harry's voice trailed off.  
"What is it, Harry?" Merlin began to sound concerned now, "are you alright? Is Eggsy okay?"  
"Eggsy's been shot" Harry said.  
"How's that possible?" Merlin cried out in surprise, "the suit..."  
"Armor piercing rounds" Harry interrupted before Merlin could finish his sentence.  
"Ah, fuck me..." Merlin sighed heavily into the intercom, "where are you?"  
"Poppy's diner" Harry answered, "what's your position?"  
"I chased some of Poppy's men into the jungle, but they're taken care of by now. I've just spotted a means of transport, so I'll come and collect you and get us all back to the plane. Stay where you are, I'll be there in five minutes".  
"Alright" Harry confirmed, "please hurry".

Harry turned his attention back to Eggsy. Now that he was sure help was on the way, he could fully focus on taking care of the younger agent.  
He unbuttoned the two buttons of Eggsy's suit jacket and pulled it aside to have a better look. The white dress shirt Eggsy wore underneath his jacket was torn at the places of the gunshots and crimson stains were growing larger still.  
The young agent was taking panting and somewhat wheezing breaths, and was sweating heavily, yet trembling at the same time. Harry pressed his fingers against Eggsy's neck to feel for a pulse and felt a beating that was way too fast. Right now there was no way of measuring Eggsy's blood pressure, but Harry dared to bet it was too low. He knew perfectly well that Eggsy showed many signs of going into shock and that, for now, he couldn't do much about it other than control the damage as much as possible.

"Eggsy?" Harry lightly tapped the young man's cheek. At first nothing happened, but after a few seconds a soft groan escaped Eggsy's lips and he stirred minutely.  
"Eggsy, look at me". Harry's voice was demanding, yet concerned and compassionate. Eggsy groaned softly once more and finally blue eyes sluggishly opened behind the spectacles.  
"H-Harry?" Eggsy sounded weak and somewhat confused. He made a feeble attempt to sit upright, but was gently pushed back down by Harry.  
"No, no, stay down" Harry said in a tone that was almost soothing, "you'll be alright, lie still".  
"What happened?" Eggsy asked softly, now ceasing his attempt to move any further.  
"Whiskey shot you. You're bleeding" Harry cut the story very short, "Merlin's on the way to take us back to the plane".  
"How bad does it look?" Eggsy's voice trembled on the question. Harry did not answer, but placed his hands on Eggsy's chest to better examine the wounds. Eggsy winced loudly as Harry's fingers pressed a little too close to the wound to the side of his chest.  
"My apologies" Harry mumbled.  
" 's Alright" Eggsy slurred his words, "I'm guessing you're gonna have to hurt me even more anyway".  
"How's that?" Harry asked, for a moment looking up from his examination.  
"Isn't the next thing you were gonna tell me that you'll have to keep pressure on the wounds?" Eggsy had caught up on the fact that the look on Harry's face hardened when he had a better look at the wound to Eggsy's flank. Eggsy had tried to make his usual sarcasm sound through when he spoke, but couldn't help that the fear was more evident.  
Harry looked down at Eggsy and knew that the younger man's fear was completely accurate. He slowly nodded his head to confirm what he was indeed about to do.  
"Fuck me" Eggsy almost spit out the words.  
"It'll have to be done" Harry said solemnly.  
"I know" Eggsy mumbled with a hefty sigh. He pressed the back of his head hard into Harry's jacket, which served as pillow, and closed his eyes in fearful anticipation.

Harry placed his hands over the wound to the left side of Eggsy's stomach, which was the most cause for concern, and pressed down without any further advance warning.  
Eggsy let out an involuntary scream in pain, which reverberated through Poppy's diner. It made Harry's heart ache, but he didn't release the pressure.  
Eggsy was taking heavy, unsteady breaths now, almost spitting out the air that left his lungs and gulping in new. Harry could only imagine how much pain Eggsy must be in right now, and the fact that he was causing it unsettled him more than he dared to admit.

"It's alright, Eggsy" Harry mumbled, partly to steady his own nerves, "breathe, just breathe".  
"I'm sorry, Harry" Eggsy grumbled in pain, "the pain… I – I can't..."  
"You must" Harry took one hand away from the wound to grab Eggsy's chin and make the younger man look at him.  
"I am going to get you through this" Harry sounded more determined than ever before.  
"Promise?" Eggsy asked in a trembling voice. It suddenly hit Harry how young Eggsy actually was. Way too young to die… So Harry made the decision right then and there, that he, Harry Hart, would not allow that to happen.  
"I promise" Harry answered earnestly.  
Eggsy looked at Harry, but had trouble focusing his eyes on the older man's face. Harry knew Eggsy was doing his utter best to hold on to consciousness, but that his battle would soon be lost.  
"Give in to it, Eggsy" Harry finally mumbled, seeing Eggsy's immense pain emanating from his eyes, "it's okay, I'll take care of you".  
One of Eggsy's hands took a firm grip of the sleeve of Harry's shirt, tightly clenching a first around the fabric. "I'm scared, Harry" Eggsy's voice choked up somewhat.  
"Don't worry" Harry soothed, "I'm here and I'll make sure nothing happens to you".  
"If I don't wake up, tell Tilde that I'm sorry an that I love her. Will you do that?" Eggsy said weakly.  
"Emotional women are not really my thing, Eggsy" Harry answered jokingly, "so you're going to have to tell her that yourself".  
Eggsy managed a little smile through his pain.

Harry felt Eggsy's grip around his shirt sleeve begin to slacken, and it wasn't long before the younger agent's eyelids fell closed and he sank away into unconsciousness…


	2. Chapter 2

After his brief communication with Harry, Merlin had jump-started the first of Poppy's pick-up trucks that he came across. He had gotten quite off the Poppyland property during his pursuit of some of Poppy's men, but, eventually, he had managed to catch up with them and had not delayed in driving bullets through their heads.  
Jump-starting the pick-up truck took him only half a minute and he estimated that he was about a ten minute drive from Eggsy and Harry's location. He kicked the gas pedal all the way to the floor and sent the truck racing over the bumpy rainforest road.

It felt like hours later to Merlin when he finally steered the truck through the Poppyland entrance gates. He stomped on the break and jumped out of the car.  
"Harry!" Merlin bellowed at the top of his lungs, "Harry, where are you?!"  
"Diner!" came Harry's faint reply. Merlin didn't waste any time and sprinted towards the diner. He threw himself through the door and skidded to a halt inside.  
"Oh, sweet Lord" Merlin mumbled, as he found Harry and Eggsy inside. The younger agent was lying on the floor, while the older agent had his hands pressed firmly into his side. Quite a lot of Eggsy's blood was covering the floor by now and it stained Harry's hands now, too.  
"Is he going to be alright?" Merlin stood frozen on the spot. He knew he had asked a stupid question, but the words had left his mouth before he even realized it.  
"I don't know" Harry answered honestly, "we need to get him on the plane and back to Statesman headquarters. If we can keep him alive through the flight, he might just have a chance".  
"Alright" Merlin said, "there's quite an extensive stock of medical supplies on the plane, so I should be able to provide first aid there".  
"Good" Harry replied, "grab a few towels from the kitchen and then help me get him to the truck".

Merlin did as he was told, hurrying over to collect the towels and then straight back to Harry and Eggsy.  
"Get his legs" Harry instructed. Merlin lifted Eggsy's legs off the floor, while Harry picked him up by the armpits. Together, the two men carried the unconscious younger agent to the truck parked outside. They carefully laid Eggsy down in the open cargo area of the pick-up truck. Merlin quickly took up the driver's seat, while Harry climbed into the cargo area to stay with Eggsy.  
Merlin kicked the engine roaring to life and sent the truck speeding along the forest road again.  
"It's about 20 minutes back to the plane" he yelled over his shoulder to Harry.  
"Go as fast as you can!" Harry yelled back, as he braced himself for the bumpy ride he knew was about to come.

* * *

All the hustling and bustling of the now speeding truck had pulled Eggsy back to consciousness.  
"Harry..." he mumbled just loud enough for the older man to hear.  
"Easy, Eggsy" Harry soothed. Instead of his hands, he now had one of the towels pressed firmly against the wound to Eggsy's flank.  
"Harry, make it stop..." Eggsy pleaded, "it hurts so… bad". His voice broke on the last word and Harry noticed a single tear spilling from the corner of Eggsy's eye.  
"We're nearly there" Harry tried to ease the younger man, "once we're on the plane I'll find you some painkillers and we're going to treat those wounds".  
Eggsy slowly closed his eyes again, but Harry knew he was still wide awake. He felt Eggsy's muscles tremble even through the towel, and heard him wince whenever the truck jerked too violently or was driven through a pothole. The worst thing for Harry was knowing that Eggsy was fully conscious to experience every excruciating second of it and that, for now, there was nothing he could do to relieve his pain.

* * *

For someone who usually spent his time behind a computer or doing some other kind of research, Merlin's driving skills were surprisingly adamant. He got them back to the plane in less then 20 minutes and even managed to find the least bumpy road, so as not to cause unnecessary discomfort to Eggsy.

Merlin raced the truck onto the tarmac where they had left the plane, stopping it simply by janking the hand brake. He jumped out of the truck and trotted around to the cargo area to help Harry with Eggsy.  
"Leave it" Harry stopped him, "I'll get Eggsy inside, you get the plane ready".  
"Right" Merlin managed to mumble before he sprinted off to get the plane ready for departure.

"Eggsy?" Harry said, very carefully shaking the younger man's shoulder in order to get his attention.  
"Hmm..." Eggsy groaned and opened one eye to look at Harry. Like Harry had been suspecting, Eggsy had not been unconscious, but had only lain with his eyes closed in a futile attempt to deal with his pain.  
"Can you walk?" Harry asked.  
"I don't know" Eggsy sighed wearily. Harry momentarily bit his lower lip, clearly thinking on what to do next.  
"But I'll try..." Eggsy added softly, "might need your help, though". Harry gave Eggsy a little smile and nodded his head wordlessly.

Harry very carefully helped Eggsy sit upright, and eventually out of the truck. Eggsy stood unsteadily on his feet, his knees at a constant risk of buckling out from under him.  
Harry had positioned himself by Eggsy's side. His arm was firmly around the younger man's waist, while one of Eggsy's arms was slung around Harry's shoulders.  
"Okay, easy now" Harry coached Eggsy as they slowly shuffled to the plane's stairs. Eggsy often winced and his breathing was somewhat unsteady and shaky. Harry could see the pain reflected in every fibre of Eggsy's being. From his tightly clenched jaws, to the trembling hand gripping at Harry's shoulder, everything simply emanated pain and misery.  
The short distance from the truck to the plane's stairs were hard for Eggsy, but the stairs itself were the real challenge. He leaned heavily on Harry with every step and at some points Harry nearly had to drag him forward. Eggsy was positively whimpering now with every step he took, even though he did his utmost best to suppress it. Harry never made any comment on it, but simply kept supporting him and allowed Eggsy to lean heavily on him.

"Alright, you're there" Harry eased as they finally reached the top of the stairs and stepped into the plane. They had only just made it inside, when Eggsy's strength gave out on him. His legs refused to carry his weight any longer and he sank to the floor. Harry, who was still supporting him, could prevent him from fully falling to the floor and caught him in his arms.  
"I-I'm s-sorry, Harry" Eggsy's voice trembled, "I can't… I can't anymore..."  
"You don't need to go any further" Harry said, "you did good".  
Harry carefully guided Eggsy to lay down on his back on the plane's carpeted floor, and sat down next to him. Eggsy was ghostly pale and trembling all over, yet sweating profusely. The bleeding of his wounds seemed to have lessened somewhat, but he was still losing too much blood. Harry pressed two fingers against Eggsy's neck to feel a too rapid heartbeat.

"Am I going to die, Harry?" The question came out of the blue, and if Eggsy hadn't sounded worn out before, he now sounded positively exhausted.  
"No, you're not" Harry immediately retorted.  
"Don't lie to me" Eggsy whispered, "I've been losing blood from three wounds for over thirty minutes now, I can do the math". Harry had to admit that he felt proud of Eggsy at that moment. Even though severely injured, the young agent still had the instincts to watch his surroundings and register facts and details which might be important to himself or the mission.  
"When have I ever lied to you?" Harry's eyes met Eggsy's pain-filled ones.  
"Never" Eggsy finally sighed, exhausted. The corner of his mouth curled into a tiny grin, before he slowly went limp and finally gave in to unconsciousness again.

* * *

"Hang on, Harry" Merlin's voice sounded from the cockpit, "we'll be taking off momentarily".  
"Not a moment too soon" Harry answered, looking down in worry on the now unconscious again Eggsy.  
"Once we're in the air, Ginger can remotely take over control of the plane from Statesman HQ" Merlin continued, "that gives me the opportunity to look over Eggsy's wounds".

The plane's engines roared, picking up the strength to get airborne. Harry braced himself against the fuselage wall, as the plane thundered along the runway and finally lifted off.

It wasn't long after the plane had taken off, when Merlin exited the cockpit and hurried over to Harry and the stricken Eggsy.  
"Dear God" Merlin mumbled, after having just a short look at Eggsy's wounds, "these are serious injuries, Harry. Far worse than I first believed".  
"I realize that" Harry answered gravely, "but we need to do what we can".  
"Absolutely" Merlin said, "I'll do everything in my power and more, but… there's not much I _can_ do. He needs surgery and I can't do that here on the plane, I don't even have the equipment for it here..."  
"We can't lose him" Harry urged. Merlin had to admit that he had never seen Harry so affected by another Kingsman's injury.  
"Harry?" Merlin asked carefully. For the first time now, Harry looked deep into Merlin's eyes.  
" _I_ can't lose him" Harry admitted, voice slightly hoarse with suppressed emotion, "he's like a son to me..."

* * *

 **Thanks for reading again. Next chapter will be up as soon as possible.  
All reviews, favs and follows are highly appreciated ;-)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Apologies for the long wait on this next chapter...  
** **Hopefully, you'll all enjoy this and all reviews, favs and follows are highly appreciated ;-)**

* * *

Merlin couldn't say he was shocked by Harry's confession. He had always known there was a special connection between Harry and Eggsy, but hearing Harry admit to it was still rare. He had also seen what losing Harry had done to Eggsy and could therefore say, with great confidence, that this connection was surely mutual.

"Okay" Merlin stood up now, "first I need supplies". He walked over to the wall that held the bottles of liquor and stared at it as though searching for something.  
"Now, Ginger mentioned..." Merlin mumbled to himself, "Ah! There it is!" He pushed a quite well-hidden button on the wall, and part of a panel in the wall slid aside to reveal a sort of infirmary. Merlin quickly gathered the things he would be needing and rushed back to Harry and Eggsy.

"I'm going to need your help, Harry" Merlin said, as he sat back on the ground next to Eggsy.  
"Whatever you need" Harry answered, "just tell me what to do".  
"First of all, he needs to lose his jacket and shirt" Merlin instructed, "I'll be applying a pressure bandage to try and contain the bleeding as much as possible".  
Harry wordlessly set to the task he was given, carefully maneuvering Eggsy into a sitting position and stripping him of his jacket and dress shirt. Now that Eggsy was left bare torso-ed, the magnitude of his injuries became all the more evident. Apart from the three bullet-wounds, his entire chest and stomach were smeared with his own blood and fresh blood was still spilling from the wounds.  
Merlin edged closer to Eggsy and minutely examined all three gunshot wounds. He grumbled and hummed occasionally, but it was all incoherent and not directed at anyone.

"What do you think?" Harry asked carefully after a minute or two.  
"The wound to his shoulder is only minor" Merlin began, "looks like just a flesh wound and can be left untreated for now. The other two wounds are more reason for concern. It looks like the bullet to his chest cracked a rib or two, and we need to be careful they won't fully break and puncture a lung".  
"You think that already happened?" Harry asked.  
"No" Merlin answered quickly, "he would be clawing for breath if that were the case".  
"What about the wound to his side?" Harry continued.  
"The worst one, if you ask me" Merlin answered, "the amount of bleeding there tells me the bullet hit an artery or possibly nicked his spleen".  
Harry sighed heavily. "Does he stand a chance, you think?"  
Merlin shrugged his shoulders. "If the bandages that I'll be applying will hold, he'll have a chance". "Then let's get those wounds treated" Harry said gravely.

Merlin laid out the items he would be needing.  
"I need you to keep him upright, while I apply the bandages" Merlin instructed. Harry carefully lifted the unconscious Eggsy into a sitting position, resting the young man's head against his chest.  
"Alright" Merlin mumbled, "this will only take a moment". He expertly applied the bandages to the wounds on Eggsy's chest and stomach, wrapping them tightly around the young man's injuries.  
Harry had one hand resting on the back of Eggsy's neck while Merlin worked. He still felt the trembling of Eggsy's muscles, as the young man was continually fighting for his life.

"Okay" Merlin sat back after a few minutes and looked down at his work. "These bandages will hopefully hold until we reach the States again".  
"Let's move him to the sofa" Harry insisted, "I don't like him lying on the floor like this".  
Merlin helped Harry carefully lift Eggsy off the floor and carry him to the nearby sofa. Harry folded out a blanket and made sure Eggsy was warmly covered, before he sat himself down in one of the armchairs nearby. Merlin had walked back over to the stock of medical supplies and was looking over them thoughtfully again.  
"Ah" he softly exclaimed, clearly finding what he was looking for. He pulled out two bags of blood and an IV-bag containing saline solution. Harry had been following Merlin's every move.  
"Good find, Merlin" he commented, when he realized what Merlin was holding.  
"This will definitely help him, especially to counteract the shock" Merlin answered. He hastily set up the pole to hang up the IV-bag, and quickly made sure the first bag of blood and saline solution were being administered into Eggsy's bloodstream.  
"Once this one is empty, switch it for the full one" Merlin indicated the bag of blood, "I'm going back to the cockpit to keep an eye on things there". Harry did not reply, but Merlin knew that he had heard and understood him. He was certain Harry would keep a close eye on Eggsy, so Merlin quietly retreated to the cockpit.

* * *

The plane had been flying back in the direction of America for over five hours now. About an hour ago, Harry had to change Eggsy's bloodbag for a full one. He had been checking on the younger agent every 30 minutes, and had to conclude, to his satisfaction, that Eggsy had become a lot calmer. His breathing was no longer wheezing, his heart-rate was lower, and his trembling had mostly subsided.  
After changing the bag of blood, Harry sat back down in his armchair. He folded his hands together and stared out of one of the small windows on the other side of the plane. It was night-time by now, so there wasn't much else to see than darkness, but Harry kept staring at it anyway.

"Fancy a drink?"  
Harry hadn't even realized that he had fallen asleep, but was startled awake by Merlin holding out a martini to him.  
"Thank you". Harry thankfully accepted the drink and immediately took a sip. He looked around at Eggsy, who was still unconscious and lying on the sofa.  
"He's alright, I just checked on him" Merlin said, having caught Harry looking.  
"Good" Harry mumbled.  
"I informed Ginger on his injuries and his current condition" Merlin said, "she'll have a medical response team ready the moment we land. He'll be in surgery five minutes after touchdown".  
"Thank you" Harry answered, "now we'll just have to make sure he pulls through the remainder of the flight".  
"The blood transfusions and the IV are definitely helping him" Merlin said, "the pressure bandages seem to be holding and it looks like the bleeding has slowed somewhat". Harry slowly nodded his head and took another sip of his martini.

For a little while there was silence between Harry and Merlin.  
"Can I ask you a personal question, Harry?" Merlin broke the silence. Harry gave him a questioning look, but nodded once to indicate that Merlin could proceed.  
"Earlier, you said that _you_ couldn't lose Eggsy" Merlin started hesitatingly.  
"I did" Harry said honestly, "and I meant it".  
"The kid's grown on you" Merlin stated with a little more confidence now. Harry took another sip of his martini and blew out a deep breath.  
"The day I got the call that he was at the police station, it was a call I had been waiting for" Harry explained, "finally there was the chance to properly meet the son of the man who saved my life so many years before".  
"That must have been different from what you expected" Merlin grinned.  
"Sure" Harry answered, "he was fairly different from myself, but I also saw potential. A possibility for what he could become with proper training".  
"Well, you were right" Merlin said, "but, I must admit, when you brought him in as your candidate for Lancelot's position, I honestly thought you'd lost your mind".  
Harry chuckled. "He was somewhat different, wasn't he?"  
"Turned out you were right about him, though" Merlin continued, "you must have been disappointed when he didn't shoot his dog?"  
"Yes, and I told him" Harry's expression mixed with sadness now, "I was telling him off for it when you called me about Valentine and that American church. The last things I said to him before I left, were words of criticism".  
"Well, if anything, it only made him more determined about Kingsman" Merlin said.  
"I always believed he would become a Kingsman one day" Harry continued, "I never considered he would replace me, though".

Silence fell between Harry and Merlin once more for a few moments.  
"Eggsy was devastated when you died" Merlin broke the silence, "or at least, when we thought you had died".  
"He didn't tell me with so many words" Harry said carefully, "but I could tell. Right after my memories came back to me, he gave me a hug, and..." Harry's voice broke slightly, before trailing off completely. Merlin stared at the clear liquid in his own martini-glass and decided not to push the matter any further. He could guess what that hug had meant to Harry.  
Without saying anything else, Harry rose from his seat and walked over to where Eggsy lay. He placed a flat hand on the young man's chest, to feel its slow rise and fall.  
"He's strong, Harry, he'll make it" Merlin said, watching Harry's every move. He spoke the words, but wasn't truly sure that he believed them himself.  
"Well" Harry sighed, "I won't sit easily until he's made it through surgery and wakes up to tell me he feels fine".

* * *

The remainder of the flight back to the States passed quite uneventful. Both Harry and Merlin checked up on Eggsy on a regular basis, but his condition remained unchanged and not once did he regain consciousness. The bandages Merlin had applied seemed to hold and most of the bleeding was somewhat controlled. Nevertheless, he had lost a lot of blood and was not nearly out of danger yet.

"Harry, sit down, we'll be landing in a few minutes" Merlin called out from the cockpit. Harry sat down on the floor next to the sofa Eggsy lay on, making sure the young agent would be okay during the landing. Eggsy still remained unconscious, but, with medical attention only minutes away now, Harry dared to be cautiously optimistic about Eggsy's chances.

Merlin landed the plane fairly smoothly on the airstrip by Statesman HQ.  
The moment the plane had come to a full stop, it was clear that Ginger had kept her word. She stood waiting with a 5-doctor strong medical team. The plane's stairs had barely touched the ground or Ginger and the medical team already stood inside.  
"Where is he?" she immediately demanded to know.  
"Over here" Harry called out to her, still sitting on the floor beside Eggsy. Ginger hurried over to him, followed closely by three of the doctors. Harry quickly rose to his feet to give the doctors the space to examine Eggsy, with which they started promptly.  
"This looks bad" Ginger turned to Harry, "what happened exactly?"  
"Your Agent Whiskey shot him" Harry answered sternly, "damn near killed him on the spot".  
"Wait...what?" Ginger was clearly shocked by this, "I know Whiskey's dead, but...what?!"  
"Whiskey was a double agent" Harry continued.  
"Merlin didn't say anything about that!" Ginger exclaimed in shock.  
"Because I asked him not to" Harry clearly wanted to finish this conversation and leave the plane, "where's Agent Champagne? I urgently need to speak to him".  
"He's not in. Away on business" Ginger answered timidly. She still had trouble processing the information she had just been given. She had never been particularly close to Agent Whiskey, but learning of his secret agenda still got to her.  
"I'll deal with Agent Champagne later" Harry mumbled, "for now I need to oversee the distribution of Poppy's antidote".  
"Our resources are at you disposal" Ginger said meekly, "I'll call ahead to inform our team of your arrival".  
"Much appreciated" Harry said, now a little more calm. He looked around at Eggsy, before he made to leave the plane. The younger agent was being transferred onto a stretcher by the doctors, ready to be taken to surgery.  
"Take care of him" Harry told Ginger, before he briskly marched away.  
"Won't leave him out of my sight" Ginger mumbled softly in reply.


	4. Chapter 4

**Apologies for the delay in this last chapter. I have been moving house, and have thoroughly underestimated the amount of time and work that takes…  
So, this is the last chapter to this story. I hope you'll all like it. All reviews, favs and follows are still highly appreciated :-)**

* * *

Four hours after the plane had touched down on American soil, Harry finally made it to the medical wing of Statesman HQ. He had been overseeing the distribution of Poppy's antidote with some of the other Statesman personnel up until now. He was now satisfied that everything was progressing smoothly, and found he could responsibly retreat from his task and turn his attention back to Eggsy.

Harry paced briskly through the hallways that lead to the medical wing. He passed through the last set of doors and arrived in a kind of waiting area. There was only one other person there: Merlin.  
Merlin stood in the middle of the room, staring blankly at one of the walls and holding a forgotten cup of tea that had long gone cold.  
"Merlin?" Harry approached him, "any news?" Merlin broke his stare to focus his gaze on Harry.  
"Not yet" he answered, "he's still in surgery, but according to Ginger they should be done soon now". Harry sighed heavily and sat down on a nearby table, passing a hand over his face.  
"I should have seen it coming" he grumbled, renewed feelings of guilt rising up.  
"Don't beat yourself up, Harry" Merlin immediately retorted, "you were the only one who saw this coming. You fucking killed the man for it! Twice, even!"  
"That's not what I meant" Harry said, "I should have expected that Whiskey would show up in Cambodia". Merlin remained quiet for a little while.  
"It's not your fault, Harry" he finally emphasized again.  
"Well, it feels like it is" Harry mumbled.

Before Merlin could say anything else, a doctor walked into the waiting area, followed closely by Ginger. Merlin and Harry immediately turned their full attention to them.  
"The operation went well" the doctor began, "we managed to stop all the bleeding. One of the bullets slightly damaged the spleen, which caused a significant amount of blood loss. Another bullet cracked a rib, but didn't do any damage to the lungs".  
"He'll be likely to make a full recovery" Ginger added with a careful smile. Harry blew out a deep breath in relief  
"Can we go to him?" Merlin asked.  
"He's still recuperating from the operation, and I expect he will be unconscious for a little while longer. The trauma he sustained is still significant, and the body will need time to recover from it" the doctor explained, "but it would do no harm for you to sit with him".  
"I'll take you to him" Ginger said, and led the way out of the waiting room.

Harry and Merlin followed Ginger to a small hospital room. It held a single hospital bed, in which Eggsy lay. A screen next to the bed constantly monitored and showed his vitals.  
"You can stay here as long as you wish and whenever you feel like it" Ginger said softly, "my office is through the doors at the end of the hallway, so if you need anything..." Ginger's voice trailed off and she averted her gaze to her own feet.  
"Thank you" Harry said earnestly, "for everything you've done". Ginger looked up at Harry and it only now became clear that tears were glistening in her eyes.  
"I'm sorry" she sobbed quietly, "I should've known something was off with Whiskey. I should not have revived him after that headshot".  
"He did a good job at hiding his true motives" Harry said solemnly, withholding himself of any further comment. Ginger dried her eyes on the sleeve of her blouse, before she turned around and left the room.  
Merlin shortly contemplated going after her, but ultimately decided against that. He instead focused his attention on the monitor by Eggsy's bed. Harry planted himself in one of the comfortable chairs in the room.  
"Satisfied?" He asked Merlin, who was still scrutinizing the screen.  
"Given the circumstances, I am very satisfied" Merlin answered, "he will have a lot of healing to do and a great amount of strength to gain, but for now he's doing alright". Merlin tore his eyes off the screen and sat down in one of the other chairs.  
Harry had slouched down in his chair, with his elbow planted on one of the armrests and his hand supporting his head.  
"Lighten up, Harry" Merlin said, knowing perfectly well that Harry was still beating himself up for this entire situation, "you will soon get the chance to scold Agent Champagne for all this".  
"Oh, and I will". The corner of Harry's mouth momentarily pulled into a sideways grin as he spoke.

* * *

The first thing Eggsy realized again was a pounding headache. His torso filled with a dull throbbing pain, but that was quite bearable.  
As consciousness slowly returned to him, so did the hazy memories of what had happened. Cambodia, Poppy's diner, the look on Whiskey's face as he pulled the trigger, the pain of the bullets tearing through his flesh… Eggsy shuddered at the memory of that fiery and intense pain.

He must have actually moved, for there immediately was a warm and comforting hand on his uninjured shoulder.  
"Eggsy?" It was Merlin's voice. Eggsy rolled his head slightly to the side, but didn't open his eyes. It was only now that he realized that people were speaking in raised voices. His brow furrowed into a crease, for the noise made his head hurt even more.  
"Why are you yelling at me?" Eggsy mumbled hoarsely.  
"I'm not yelling at you, laddie" Merlin answered kindly. Eggsy slowly opened his eyes now. He found Merlin sitting by his bedside, hand still resting on his shoulder and indeed very much _not_ yelling.  
"Welcome back" Merlin said softly the moment he found Eggsy looking at him.  
"What's that noise?" Eggsy asked weakly. Merlin didn't reply, but simply motioned his head to his left. Eggsy's gaze followed the direction Merlin had indicated, and he started to understand what was happening.

There, about three feet from the foot of Eggsy's bed, stood Harry. He was speaking in a highly raised voice, directed at Agent Champagne, who stood silently opposite him and was staring at his own shoes, letting the stream of angry words wash over him without protest.  
Slowly, the, first incomprehensible, sounds started to make sense to Eggsy and he started to understand what was being said.

"It is utterly unacceptable" Harry spoke still in a raised voice, "my agent was nearly killed, because no one here noticed something fishy was going on! And I cannot be bothered by the fact that Agent Whiskey was working in another city. He is your personnel and therefore your responsibility". It was evident from the expression on Harry's face that he was fuming with anger and frustration.  
"You're right" Champ held up his hands by way of apology, "you're absolutely right".  
Harry had vented most of his anger by yelling at Champ, and was starting to calm down a bit again.  
"He will receive the best care from our doctors" Champ continued, "and this matter will be thoroughly sought out, I can assure you that".  
"Thank you" Harry said, not entirely forgetting his manners.  
"He'll be alright" Champ shortly clasped Harry on the shoulder, before he quietly left the room.

Harry sighed heavily and turned around to face Merlin, whom he expected would have something to say after this confrontation with Champ.  
"Eggsy!" Harry's face lit up instantly, and he was by Eggsy's bedside with two giant strides, "how are you feeling?"  
"Not too well" Eggsy answered wearily, "a bit of pain and dizzy, but I guess I'll live". Harry eyed him suspiciously, as if Eggsy was about to drop dead right then and there.  
"Really" Eggsy emphasized, seeing Harry's look.  
"You need rest" Merlin interrupted, looking shortly at Eggsy, before shifting his gaze and giving Harry a stern look, indicating him to leave Eggsy be.  
"Of course" Harry agreed, "Merlin and I still have some work to do, and you indeed need your rest". Eggsy couldn't say he minded much. He was feeling dizzy and exhausted, and the dull pain of his injuries was wearing him rather fast.  
Both Harry and Merlin rose to their feet and were about to leave Eggsy alone. Merlin pointed to a small, red button by the side of Eggsy's bed. "If you need anything or if something's wrong, just press that. Someone will come straight away. And I'll send one of the doctors to give you some more painkillers".  
"Thanks, Merlin" Eggsy mumbled, who had already settled comfortably back into his pillow and was ready to drift back off to sleep. Merlin gave him a reassuring smile, before he and Harry left the room. Eggsy closed his eyes and fell back asleep almost instantly.

* * *

 _"_ _Harry!"  
He screamed the name at the top of his lungs. The image of Valentine's smirking face, looking down on his 'work', were still playing on the screen in front of him.  
The horrid realization that there was no way Harry could have survived such a shot, washed over him. Harry, the only person who had given him a chance to prove himself, was dead….  
He felt tears burn in his eyes and a hefty lump blocked his throat._

Dead… It was the only thing he could think about. Harry was dead….

 _A pain washed over him with such an intensity, that he crumpled to his knees on the floor. He buried his face in his hands and cried._  
 _"No… no….no…." His voice grew louder and sobbed heavier with every uttering of the word._

"NO!" Eggsy shot upright in his hospital bed, ignoring the pain of his protesting wounds. He was sweating and trembling, and breathing heavily.

"Calm down, Eggsy".  
Harry's calm and collected voice brought Eggsy slightly back to his senses. He looked to his side and found Harry sitting by his bedside. Very much alive.  
"Harry?" Eggsy's voice faltered somewhat, "y-you were dead! Valentine, he shot you and I… watched it… and there was n-nothing I could do..." Eggsy was quickly working his way into hyperventilation.  
"Eggsy, I need you to calm down". Harry placed a comforting hand on Eggsy's back, "I'm afraid you've been having a rather unpleasant dream. I am not dead, I assure you that I'm truly here".  
Eggsy kept his eyes on Harry, as though wanting to make sure that the older agent would not suddenly vanish into thin air. And before he could help himself or fully realized what he was doing, he flung his arms around Harry and pulled him into a tight bear-hug.

After about 30 seconds, Eggsy let go of Harry.  
"Sorry" he muttered quietly, but Harry had heard him.  
"I've been told that my death has had quite an impact on you" Harry was studying Eggsy's reaction as he spoke. Eggsy contemplated on whether or not he should tell the truth, but finally decided that honesty would be best.  
"Yes" he mumbled, plucking at his sheets, avoiding to look at Harry now and swallowing back some tears, "Merlin's been talking, apparently".  
"Merlin was worried about you for a while" Harry said, "he feared you might give it all up".  
"Thought about that" Eggsy answered, "but then I remembered that you would probably skin me alive if we ever met in another life". He cast a sideways glance at Harry, a mischievous twinkle playing in his eyes now.  
"Damn right I would" Harry chuckled. Eggsy made an attempt at laughing too, but found it far too painful on his injuries.

They were both silent for a little while. Eggsy lay still, slowly feeling the panic and hurt of his dream drain from his body and mind.  
"Harry?" Eggsy broke the silence after a while, "I'm glad you're back". Harry nodded his head wordlessly, but a careful smile played on his lips.  
"And I'm glad you remember me now" Eggsy added with a real smile, as he carefully lay back down and pulled the blankets up to his chin.  
Harry laughed. "And I am glad that today hasn't cost you your life" he said wryly, "I could not have forgiven myself if it had".  
"Don't worry about me" Eggsy mumbled, now having closed his eyes again as he lay, "you know how they say the riff-raff are hard to kill".  
"You are no riff-raff" Harry said seriously now, "you are a Kingsman. And a damn fine one, I may add".


End file.
